


Human

by WolfToothed



Category: Fallout 3
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-08
Updated: 2017-12-08
Packaged: 2019-02-12 01:39:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12948528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfToothed/pseuds/WolfToothed





	Human

Standing before his bathroom mirror, Harkness looked over his hands. Pale blue veins ran beneath his skin, over strong hands and muscled arms. He swallowed hard, flicking his blue eyes up to his reflection. Those eyes looked back at him, and his heart beat hard. He drew breath, he bled, the experimental razor cut on his arm a testament to that, and hell, he _cried_... Yet... He wasn't real. He wasn't human, he was... 

A3-21.

A synthetic human. Not a real human. Put together with science and machinery. Tears stung his eyes, and it only served to make him more distraught, knowing that they weren't _real_. He clenched his fists, digging his nails into the palms of his hands, staring at his reflection. All his life... A lie. A big, fat lie. 

Activate A3-21 recall code violet.

The words that changed his entire life.

Coming from the lips of the man he'd come to care for. What if Jean no longer cared for him, knowing he was just machine? When he'd activated his recall code, Harkness had only been focused on his own crisis; he hadn't even paid attention to Jean's reaction. He'd taken off to his room, shutting himself in the bathroom, and now, here he stood. He glared at his teary-eyed reflection, swallowing hard. Then, his muscles stiffened as he heard the door click open, then closed, and heard footsteps approaching the bathroom door. 

"Don't," he tried to speak strongly, but his voice came out wavering and cracking. The door opened, and there stood Jean, warm brown eyes speaking volumes of worry for the man before the mirror. 

"Harkness..." Jean breathed, bringing a hand up to his ebony hair and running his fingers through it, as he so often did when he was anxious. The synth clenched his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut, shaking his head.

"That's not who I am, I never was Harkness, just... Just a fucking lie," he breathed, voice trembling in sorrow in his existential crisis, the blood, or whatever it was, dripping off his arm and onto the tiled floor of the bathroom. Then, he felt arms slide around his waist, circling around him and pulling him into a tight embrace against the shorter male's chest.

"That's not true," came Jean's soft voice beside his ear, and the soft timbre eased his pounding heart ever so slightly. "From everything I've seen, Harkness..." He began, and the synth opened his eyes, looking in the mirror once more, meeting the Latino man's eyes through the reflection. "From wandering the wastes, to meeting so many people... You're the most human out of them all," he sighed softly, and Harkness felt a lump grow in his throat.

"How...?" Was all he could stammer out, pained heart reaching out for something, anything, to latch onto. Then, the arms around his waist turned him, and he found himself face to face with Jean, looking down at him, meeting his brown gaze with shimmering blue eyes. 

Jean raised a hand, cupping Harkness' cheek, running his thumb over it to wipe away a tear that began trickling down his fair skin.

"You haven't given into all the awful things... You haven't turned on your friends, you haven't lost your morals, you, Harkness, have more humanity in you than so many people in the wastes combined. And even if you're... Not quite flesh and blood, you're still real. You're still _you_ , and no one can ever take that from you," Jean spoken resolutely, and he watched as Harkness' lip trembled with emotion. Then, all of a sudden, the taller man pulled him into a tight embrace, nearly stealing the breath from him. 

Harkness' warm breath caressed his neck and ear, and he found himself bringing his arms around Harkness. Then, words were spoken softly beside his ear, heavy with emotion.

"Thank you..."


End file.
